CIA Director Warns Russia Against Attacking Baltic States — Politico

During his visit to Moscow, U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe warned Russia against attacking U.S. NATO allies, including Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Politico reported this, citing sources familiar with the trip details.

Ratcliffe also used his trip to the Russian capital on Tuesday to urge the country to reduce its military and economic support for Iran.

“The meeting was primarily to warn Russia against any escalatory action against the Baltic states,” one of the sources said.

In recent weeks, Russia has issued a series of threats against NATO countries supporting Ukraine. This has raised concerns that Moscow could resort to new hybrid or limited military actions against NATO members, including the United Kingdom.

On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump denied media reports suggesting that Ratcliffe made the trip to persuade Russia not to test NATO’s resolve or take aggressive action against the United Kingdom.

He described the visit as “semi-routine” but acknowledged that it also focused on ending the Russo-Ukrainian war.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe flew to Moscow on Tuesday, August 25, aboard a C-17A Globemaster III military transport aircraft.

The aircraft landed at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport at 10:04 a.m.

Ratcliffe’s visit to Russia’s capital had not been announced in advance.

Financial Times journalist Christopher Miller previously reported that representatives of the Donald Trump administration had asked Kyiv last week not to strike Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other Russian regions on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday — the period when the U.S. was expected to send a top-ranking official to Russia. According to Miller, Ukraine agreed to the request.

This was Ratcliffe’s first visit to Russia since becoming CIA director and one of the highest-level contacts between the Trump administration and Moscow in recent months.